Pastel for the Serious Beginner: Basic Lessons in Becoming a Good Painter (Paperback)

~ (Author) "Artists who choose to work in pastels have a richer range of materials at their disposal today than ever before..." (more)
Key Phrases: serious beginner, hard pastel, pastel marks, Canson Mi-Teintes (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Thanks to the practical instruction in these pages, you will soon know how to use the beautiful, delicate pastel medium to create light-filled landscapes, sophisticated still lifes, and pleasing portraits. Beginning with materials and methods, then moving on to practical, step-by-step demonstrations, master pastelist Larry Blovits shares with readers the time-tested theories and techniques he employs in producing his widely admired, award-winning paintings.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Watson-Guptill (October 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0823039072
• ISBN-13: 978-0823039074
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 7 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #52,272 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great reference, great for beginners, July 12, 2001

By	Angel Lee "Liocorno Amethyst Moonstone" (Cleveland, OH United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This is a great reference book for those just staring to learn pastel painting. It starts with the very basics and provides a solid foundation for the artist who has aspirations of taking their work to a commercial level.

The book starts out examining materials including the pastels themselves as well as surfaces, fixatives and tools. It also discusses studio and pallet setup as well as protecting finished artwork. It then explains the fundamentals of design and composition such as color, value, light, shadow and space, and the basics of technique such as starting with shape outlines, color blocking and working from dark to light.

Selecting and setting up subject matter is then discussed, including working from life, selecting a camera and using photography as and reference. Subsequent chapters focus on pastel drawing types including still life, landscapes, figures and portraits. Each section details the necessary procedures and elements such as lighting a still life, keeping a landscape in balance or posing a figure. A step-by-step demonstration of each type accompanied by reference photos is also included.

Drawing on the author's experience and expertise as an artist, this is a book you can truly follow from beginning to end to develop and improve your own skills and abilities in working with pastels.

39 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars STAY AWAY, December 19, 2002

By	Agent Cooper (North Carolina) - See all my reviews

I recently bought this book and "Painting the Landscape in Pastel." Both of these books are devoid of any real discussion on technique. There is page after page of discussion on color, hue, value, etc. That is all well and good but there is no thorough discussion or demonstration of how to actually apply pastel to paper, only a page or two that glosses over the subject in a couple of paragraphs. There are a couple of demonstration paintings in which the author goes through a painting's different stages but it seems a book of this nature should include more than a couple of such demonstrations.

Don't waste your time or money on this one. There are other books out there that are superior for the beginner.

16 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful art but not any help..., July 12, 2003

By	Earl Burdick (Pocatello, ID United States) - See all my reviews

Mr Blovits is a great artist and his paintings are stunning. But I am a serious beginner and this book was of little help. I need a step by step book that tells me the color and techniques used...There is nowhere near enough step by step technique but the man can paint and shows what is possible in pastel.